Nature Inspired House of Stones in Taiwan

Ospace Architectsbuilt this four story building in Changua, Taiwain, in 2014. The site is an irregular triangle shape, and so it was not efficient or realistic to go with a standard floor plan for this 360 square meter building. The architects came up with two design concepts to complement the unusual location.

The initial inspiration comes from the rock in Zhangjiajie, and so the architects chose to view the site as a stone full of shapes. All of the openings of the buildings follow the idea of carving from stone, where windows and roof are excavated rather than added.

Visually the first step was separating the ground floor from the upper floors, with the exposed concrete base providing a visual barrier from the white painted upper floors. This creates the appearance of a white stone resting on an irregular rock column.

Taiwan experiences subtropical weather, which was accounted for in the next concept. A pool on the south side of the building and an open space in the center helps generate a stack effect of wind, creating a flow of cooler air around the building in the warmer months. This creates natural lighting and ventilation in the central void for the surrounding rooms.